Simplicity is happiness

You can live well and not be rich. It's a simple statement of complete common sense.  Yet a lot of people get caught up in the idea that it's wealth accumulation that makes you rich.

I have great job, as does my wife. We're not rich, far from it, yet we live a rich life. I have a comfortable home in  a stable middle-class neighborhood. When we want to go out to dinner, we go out to dinner.  We take multiple vacations a year. We live a rich life, not in terms of wealth but in terms of happiness. 

According to the National Academy of Sciences the magic number for day-to-day happiness is $75,000 per year, a number of lot of people probably think would be a lot higher.  Happiness increases up to that number but once you get above 75K day-to-day happiness doesn't really increase.  Granted, 75K is a lot of money for many people, but it barely qualifies someone as "rich". 

It all goes back to perspective.  I live better than my one-hundred-years-ago ancestors could have ever dreamed of. I don't drive a fancy automobile or live in an exclusive neighborhood. I suppose I could afford a Lexus but drive a Camry.  I need a car to get to point B.  As long as its reliable why the need for luxury? 

It may seem like a paradox, but simplifying your life may be the key to happiness. Living within your means doesn't mean you have to forgo things that will make you happy.  You simply have to figure out how to pursue what interests you within your budget. Most importantly eliminate the clutter. One easy step is to take an inventory of the material things around you.  The things you just had to go to Best Buy to pick up. How many of these things do you really need?  I often tell my wife that if our house was robbed the only things I would really miss are the mementos, pictures, etc. Insurance can replace the Blu-Ray and the big screen television. So many of us take value and are driven by the accumulation of material things, whether it's clothes or electronics. Unfortunately you can only watch one TV and wear one pair of shoes at a time. 

Eliminate the chaos.  Reduce your life, don't super-size your life.  You'd be amazed how simplicity can drive increased happiness. Prioritize what IS important.  Set your sights on a dream vacation-- it's still achievable with simplicity, provided you make it a priority. If you have a limited budget but still want to try that great new restaurant in town, try it--- even if you have to skip that morning latte for a a month. 

Expedition Impossible

How often can you say you've truly been inspired by summer network television?  In my case not that often. This summer there's an exception in the ABC reality show Expedition Impossible.  As reality shows go it's pretty standard fare, a mix of Survivor and the Amazing Race. The show takes place in Morocco and consists of teams of three competing an overland and water race that mixes problem solving, teamwork and physical endurance.  Over the past couple of weeks it's gone from great summer entertainment to true inspirational entertainment with the continued survival of the Colorado based "No Limits" team of Jeff, Ike and Erik against incredible odds.

For the past three weeks No Limits has persisted against incredible odds and avoided elimination.  What makes their story incredible is the fact that one member, Erik, is blind and another, Ike, is competing on a broken ankle.  I can't say I've been truly moved by a reality show that often, but seeing Jeff and Ike guide Erik for the entire length of the show, up mountains, down mountains on white water rapids, is a true lesson in friendship, perseverance and overcoming obstacles. Here's a link to Erik's website and amazing story.  Follow the link to a great short video on Erik speaking about the subject of adversity and getting out of your comfort zone.

In the past couple of weeks the story of No Limits has gone beyond Erik's story. For the past three weeks Ike, who's done three tours of duty in Afghanistan, has been competing on what is essentially a broken ankle-- traversing difficult mountain terrain. Against all odds, a due to teamwork and overcoming physical and mental obstacles No Limits continues on.  

If you have time to catch up the episodes are available on line.  The final is this coming Thursday.  Even if you missed all nine previous episodes I encourage you to watch the final and to cheer for the fellas from No Limits. 

Neighborhood Kids (Part 2 of 2)

I'm relatively certain he didn't recognize the kid who shot his cat with a BB gun some 30 years prior (don't worry, the cat was fine). There was nothing memorable about that glance but for a fleeting moment I felt that I owed an apology. That was just before I remembered a time when he blasted me with a garden hose for cutting through his yard on my bike. Then it dawned on me, that's just how neighborhoods are.


The basic right of land ownership has created a unique relationship between people living alongside one another. These relations have been highlighted in novels, television shows and movies for years. With that being said, who are some great, or not so great, Hollywood "neighbors" you remember?


Here's my Top 5 Neighbor List...


5. Barney Rubble: Generally a great guy; willing to help stop your car at high speeds with his bare feet.


4. Cockroach from The Cosby Show: Seemed like the kind of guy I'd want to be around. Cool dressing, smooth talking...


3. Larry from Threes Company: A great wingman, especially if you like to hang out at the Regal Beagle.


2. Cosmo Kramer: Never a dull moment, he might even sleep in your cupboard now and then.


1. Wilson: Whenever you need sage advice this guy will be on the other side of the fence tinkering in his backyard.

Neighborhood Kids (Part 1 of 2)

Most of us grew up with a neighbor who, for whatever reason, just didn't seem to like kids. Or, maybe he did like kids, but he just didn't like you. I had such a neighbor growing up. His house was an automatic target for snowballs, and his car attracted apples like none other. At some point however, youthful foolishness gave way to more mature behaviors like driving up and down the same street for hours in search of no one in particular.

I saw this neighbor just the other day, back in the neighborhood I grew up in. My best guess is that he's in his 80's now. We walked parallel to one another only on opposite sides of the street for about one block. His gait was slow, but steady. My own kids walked along the sidewalk, their short legs made for a similar pace. I wonder if their chilldlike noises caused this to happen or not, but at one point he looked over and our eyes met for the first time in 20 years.

Titletown Memories

We took a trip to Green Bay this past weekend for Packers training camp. For anyone who's soured on professional sports a trip to the NFL's smallest market may change that perception. The Packers do training camp right. One of the oldest traditions is when the kids line up outside the Lambeau Field dressing room with their bikes.  The players then ride the bikes across the parking lot and Oneida Street to the Don Hutson Center for practice. This year we transported our son's bike on the five-hour journey with the hope he would get picked by one of the players.

We drove to Green Bay on Friday and hustled over to Lambeau, getting in line outside the locker room exit. Some of the stars starting coming out of the tunnel, from Clay Matthews to BJ Raji to Josh Sitton.  They chose some deserving kids but unfortunately no one had picked our son yet.  Then it happened, rookie tight end Ryan Taylor came out and chose our son and created one of the happiest moments of his life. Number 82 happened to be wearing the same number that our son wore last year in football.  He couldn't have been more accomdating, stopping for pictures and even letting his little sister run aside. The Packers have a deep group of tight ends lead by Jermichael Finley so Ryan Taylor may not even make the team.  It doesn't matter to my son, #82 will forever be one of his favorite Packers, right up there with #12. As the weekend went on we had fun but the experience was never topped and he still hasn't stopped talking about meeting a real, live NFL Player. It's a memory he'll never forget. When Ted Thompson and Mike McCarthy settle on the roster for the defending champions here's hoping there's room for a rookie tight end from North Carolina. 



The Happy Packer Fan



Slow down to speed up (Sales)

There are two running jokes in my family.  One is an admitted clumsiness ala Chevy Chase playing Gerald Ford on SNL.  The other is an absolute inability, according to my wife, to multitask. I often disagree but then tend to give in. We all want to be better at multitasking. Unfortunately some of us just aren't that good at it.  In fact, science has proven that women are better multitaskers.

My wife's frustration aside, is multitasking really that important? Or is it more important to focus on, and master, individual tasks throughout the day?  The professional sales world is an area where multitasking is counter-productive. The effective sales professional needs a unique ability to intensely focus on one task at a time.

A professional sales rep is task oriented with a singularity of purpose around specific activities that he or she is working on at that particular time. If I'm a sales manager the last thing I want is to stop by the desk of one of my reps during prospecting time and see eight different windows open on their computer as they're "multitasking" in between prospecting calls.

Naturally there's much more to the process than simply focusing on one singular activity. Once you focus on the activity and make it a priority to not multitask the next step is deep and systematic analysis of how effective you're managing your time. Schedule your day, collect data and break down your performance.  If things need to be tweaked, tweak them. This type of personal process management can be done for any step of the sales process but works particularly well with prospecting. The framework you develop will help you master your game and make you infinitely more effective in the long-run.

The process of performance analysis can be translated to other facets of your daily life and workday. Driving efficiency will not only help you peak performance but will allow you master time management and will lead to better life balance.  So stop the multitasking.  Focus and master individual tasks.

Once individual tasks are mastered you'll become an effective multitasker.  And you're wife will be happy.

The Scrum

My six-year-old daughter is in her second year of soccer. At her age the game is comprised of twelve first-graders in a giant scrum around the ball.  Eventually a few kids figure it out and realize that if they leave the scrum they'll find open space and a goal-scoring opportunity.

As I was watching the game last night it dawned on me that the six-year-old soccer scrum is a lot like life. For many life is one big scrum as we carry-on day after day as part of the pack. Too many people never leave the scrum.  For many it's not that their unwilling they just don't realize that in many cases there's a better or different way to do things.  For others there's an unwillingness to go a different direction due to numerous reasons that seem completely legitimate while we're in the scrum. Whether its in business, athletics or life in general real happiness often doesn't come until you break away from the "scrum".

The hard part is breaking away.

Suck it up

There’s success literature everywhere. People like Covey and Ziglar have had a great impact on the way I embrace life and business. In recent years I’ve gravitated towards many of the bloggers and writers you see posted on this site’s links, people like Seth Godin and Guy Kawasaki. They all provide great insight into the changing business landscape and contemporary success.

Yet the greatest advice is something my dad gave me at a very early age.

Suck it up.

Stop complaining. If you’re outcome is not ideal change the outcome. You’re empowered to create your ideal outcome. Perceived massive stumbling blocks turn into minor speed bumps after the fact.

Suck it up.

A Guaranteed Dividend

Doom and gloom is about all we hear these days when it comes to individual investing. Portfolios have dwindled and that miracle stimulus package didn't really stimulate anything. With more and more Americans out of work, financial hardships are becoming the norm. One type of investment still existst that is definitely worth your attention.

An investment in Time.

Fresh off a six day family road trip I've learned that investing my time has yielded some incredible returns. For example, my four year olds fascination with "where are we?" has insipred the purcahase of an atlas. Instead of repeated Clifford stories at bed time, we've been exploring the world. Last night we talked about Italy. This investment also invigorated our senses, "Bunny smells like grandmas house", we have rocks from Lake Superior, we jumped off a pontoon boat to cool off on a hot summer day and spent time on the dock watching fish eat pieces of a granola bar. The investment of time has created some wonderful memories and has allowed us to connect with friends and family we don't see often enough.

An investment in time isn't much different than an actual financial one. There are risks, like the scenic route possibly not having a lot of bathroom options, or stop-orders, like stop immediately for that antique shop. Like any wise investor, or road-trip planner, you begin with some general calculations, and from there you analyze progress. I could have charted my investment in time just like that of any stock. There were moments of pure joy, excitement and happiness, and those inevitable meltdowns. Times when I hoped the trip would never end, and moments I wished it never started. The key was holding on for the long-term.

An investment in time is an investment in people. It's about talking, listening, laughing and crying. It's the making of memories, some only for a moment, and others for a lifetime. You never know what can happen, you might even start a blog.

Forget Your Five-Year Plan!

There's a particular sales guru that I receive frequent emails from.  He's renowed in his field and has helped me immensly over the years. Virtually all of his blog posts are full of useful wisdom that if enacted can greatly benefit your career.  A constant theme of many is the ideal "5-year plan" with the classic career planning mentality and how you need goal setting and a vision towards that ideal outcome. It makes perfect sense, yet it all seems so outdated.

Forget the five-year plan! In fact, stop thinking in terms of "five-years from now I'll be here," etc. Many of the five-year objectives we set will not be a reality in five-years. This mindset creates a thought process where many people delay decisons and opportunities that could benefit them in the here and now. Don't get caught in the jet stream of what is perceived as the ideal life outcome. The notion of putting in your time and getting that dream job is a great vision but the reality is it doesn't have to be a vision. If you have an ideal outcome in mind why delay that outcome for five-years?

When many people invoke the idea of the "five-year plan" they also bring up the notion of "putting in my time". Unfortunately that's exactly what a lot of people are doing--- putting in their time.

How about a five-month plan?  Or a five-day plan?

If you're in business, like I am, you have to think of life in terms of business. In five-years the business landscape may be completely different, as the last five-years can attest. You may be in an industry that doesn't exist in five-years or a company that doesn't exist in five-years. You need to constantly challenge with frequent introspection the direction you're headed.

Many people get caught up in the five-year mindset because of a fear of the unknown. Embrace the fear of the unknown.  If that career path or dream job is perfect in "five-years" why not acheive it now?  Don't wait five-years to start your own business, start the business now! It's not knowing what's on the other side that prevents many of us from making changes that seem completely rational to the outsider.  Unfortunately one of the most difficult things in the world is making those life-changing decisions that seem so daunting inside our head. The best way to analyze such a decision is to take a look at it with the worst possible outcomes in mind.  What is the worst thing that could possibly happen?

Once you stop fearing the unknown your potential is limitless. Start by avoiding the "five-year" mentality.

The Importance of Recharging

Here's some great advice by Richard Branson in his weekly syndicated article. He very astutely breaks down what we all know about the importance of recharging and taking time off. One particular paragraph caught my eye and sums up pretty well my views on the business culture in the US when it comes to taking time off.

It’s also important to take a good look at your company’s policies regarding holidays and paid vacation leave. Sadly, in some countries, particularly the US, companies do not allow employees enough time to relax and recharge. The traditional two-week holiday is just not enough; this attitude of discouraging employees from taking vacations encourages absenteeism and unhappiness. In Europe, most businesses have a better sense of what is appropriate and what will work for both employee and employer.

I'm a big believer in the idea that time off does not neccessarily mean a gap in productivity. Little things, such as an added week of vacation per year or leaving early on Friday's, have a minimal impact on productivity but can have a huge impact on morale. Some progressive companies have begun to institute programs such as ROWE (Results Oriented Work Environment) giving employees more flexibility when it comes to traveling or working from home, provided they still perform at optimal levels. Bestselling author Daniel Pink has written several books on the changing landscape of work and has really challenged our traditional work culture and how its narrow focus restricts possibility. Pink has concluded that what employees really want is is autonomy, master and purpose with the ability to better balance their work life with their interests and home life.

Here's a fantastic TED lecture by Pink on this very subject. Take twenty-minutes to view the video, it challenges many notions that we all have about intrinsic motivation.

Common sense tells us that a happy worker is a productive worker. The traditional model of management pitted against the employees in a battle to ensure productivity is outdated. Giving someone autonomy is not a bad thing.  If we can shift the focus from keeping an eye on everyone to make sure they put in their eight hours to simply making sure the work is completed you'll have happier and more fulfilled employees which should, in turn, lead to more productivity in the long run.

My favorite App of the Week--- MapMyFitness

For the past several years I was a card-carrying member of the Blackberry Brigade until Verizon finally broke through the AT&T stronghold and picked up the iPhone.  Like many I immediately became a convert (and I'm not alone considering RIM just layed off 1500 workers). Needless to say I'm a bit behind on the world of apps but am catching up very quickly.  Recently I've become a huge fan of MapMyFitness, a collection of tools for mapping your fitness whether it's individual workouts, walking, hiking, biking, etc.  The app uses location to track your exact route, time and distance.  It then aggregates the data to give you a snapshot of your progress over time.

You quickly find out some pretty interesting things.  For example I now know that to push mow my lawn I have to walk about 4 miles, which tells me I either need to get a smaller yard or buy a rider. I also found out that my walk from the train to my office in Minneapolis is 1.2 miles--- not bad twice per day.  If you make an effort to turn on the app every time you go for a walk you'd be amazed how much ground you actually cover.

With recent studies (via Men's Journal) showing that as little as forty minutes of walking daily can boost memory and even regenerate shrinking brain tissue, it's important to get that daily walk in.  With walking being harder to quantify than running a certain number of miles on the treadmill or doing reps at the gym it's nice to have a handy app to track the distance you covered.

Most importantly you get real data in that endless quest to quantify and track your fitness efforts, and if you're a real Ironman you can even post your workouts to Twitter and Facebook.

Here's a great interview via Mixergy with co-founder Robin Thurston

Manage your Inbox

Email can be someone else’s agenda for your time.  I think it’s essential to develop a structure around how you check and interact with email. Below are a couple of tips that have worked for me and can be effective in not getting chained to your inbox.

Top of the Morning: Check your email for 10 minutes right away I the morning.  Open, answer and prioritize the important stuff.  If your boss wants you to get on it, get on it.  Then minimize the screen and start to drive productivity.

My email attack plan: How I handle email is to structure my workday into blocks of 60 minutes. I put in 45 minutes being productive and then take five to catch up with co-workers, my boss or perhaps make a coffee run.  I then devote the remainder of the hour checking and responding to any important emails. My rule of thumb is that if it doesn’t need immediate action, don’t respond to it.  For every important email from your boss you probably receive five to ten emails that can be answered at the end of the day.

The end of the day: Remember the old adage “don’t take your work home with you?” Don’t take email home with you!  Smart phones have made us more productive and more mobile.  Unfortunately it’s also created a generation of people mindlessly and endlessly refreshing their email inbox.  I was as guilty of this as anyone until my wife called me on it. Clear out the inbox at the end of the day and check it again in the morning. The time from business end to your arrival in the morning is your time—don’t spend it checking to see what email your boss sent out at 8:30 PM.  That dinner conversation with a close friend is a lot more important that the “save the date” invite for the next company picnic.

Caught up in the Dip

I just finished “The Dip” by Seth Godin and I wished I would have read the book years ago.  For the past three years I was firmly immersed in Godin’s “Dip”, a valued contributor to the multi-national company I worked for, but not reaching my personal and professional growth goals. 

The concept of “The Dip” is simple—if you’re not moving forward in a job and you see no measurable progress in sight, why stick with it?  According to Godin, “If you’re trying to succeed in a job or a relationship or a task, you’re moving forward, falling behind or standing still.  There are only three choices.”

I wasn’t moving forward.  I was firmly planted in The Dip.  In hindsight I was caught up in the “company man” mindset of years past.  Like many I was raised with the notion that you get a job with a good company and put in thirty years and then retire with a nice vested pension.  The problem with that notion is that the loyalty that builds a thirty-year career is not often reciprocated by the company you work for.

That’s not to say you should quit.  When you’re in The Dip you don’t necessarily have to quit your job.  You may want to change your approach or your tactics.  If you see personal and professional growth it may be worth “leaning in and busting through”, as Godin says in the book.

The biggest takeaway is to recognize when you’re in The Dip, then take action.